U.S. stock index futures pointed to a lower open on Wednesday, as investors got ready to wade through another downpour of corporate earnings, while keeping an eye on oil and data.
Earnings season is in full swing this week, with some of the biggest U.S. companies reporting.
On Wednesday, the Street will be on alert for news out from Tesla, VMWare and Cheesecake Factory, among others.
Out of the raft of corporates reporting, investors also parsed through results from Coca-Cola Company, Boeing, GlaxoSmithKline, NBC Universal parent company Comcast and Biogen. Boeing shares jumped nearly 4 percent in the premarket, helping Dow futures ease some of their earlier losses.
While earnings are expected to be the talk of the town, economic data releases could also move markets. On Wednesday, U.S. trade deficit numbers and Markit flash US services PMI are due out at 8:30 a.m. ET and 9:45 a.m. ET, respectively, while new home sales are expected at 10 a.m. ET. Mortgage Applications fell 4.1 percent last week.
Meanwhile, the topic of oil remains on the table with prices falling on Wednesday, as concerns over a global supply glut continue to resurface. Around 7:36 a.m. ET, U.S. crude stood around $49.19 per barrel, while Brent hovered around $49.97.
Moves in the U.S. dollar will also be watched by investors. The currency has been boosted recently, by hopes that the U.S. Federal Reserve will raise interest rates by the end of 2016; however the currency came under slight pressure late Tuesday and early Wednesday.
European stocks traded lower, while Asia-Pacific indexes mostly ended in negative territory overnight. In the previous session, U.S. markets also closed in the red.